Conventional circuit board components, such as area array packages, have an array of electrical contacts located on an attachment surface of the circuit board component (e.g., a surface of the circuit board component that attaches to a circuit board). The array of electrical contacts of the area array package electrically and mechanically couple to contact pads located on the circuit board to allow electrical communication between the package and the circuit board. For example, in one arrangement, the area array package is configured as a ball grid array (BGA) device having solder balls forming the electrical contacts of the array. In another arrangement, the area array package is configured as a ceramic column grid array (CCGA) device having solder columns forming the electrical contacts of the array.
The attachment surface of conventional area array devices, such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), has a relatively small surface area (e.g., 2025 mm2). The conventional ASIC utilizes an array of solder balls having a ball diameter of 0.65 mm, thereby allowing placement of a relatively large number of solder balls on the attachment surface of the ASIC. In the array, the solder balls are distributed across the attachment surface of the ASIC in an array pattern of 50 columns having 50 solder balls per column. Such an array or grid configuration (50×50) results in 2500 solder balls in the array for mechanical attachment of the ASIC to the circuit board (e.g., attachment to the contact pads of the circuit board) and for electrical contact between the ASIC and the circuit board.
In a typical solder ball array, the solder balls of the ASIC allow transmission of data signals between the circuit board and the ASIC and allow transmission of power supply signals from the circuit board to the ASIC in order to power the ASIC during operation. Approximately 40-50% of the solder balls (e.g., 1000-1250 solder balls) of the conventional solder ball array are configured for carrying power supply signals from the circuit board to the ASIC. Approximately 50-60% of the remaining solder balls (e.g., 1250-1500 solder balls) of the conventional solder ball array, therefore, are configured to carry data signals between the circuit board and the ASIC.